CHP officer injured when struck by SUV near Donner Summit

A California Highway Patrol officer sustained “major injuries” after being struck Saturday afternoon by an out-of-control sport-utility vehicle in wintry conditions along westbound Interstate 80 near Donner Summit, according to CHP officials.

The injured male officer, who was taken to a hospital in Reno, has not yet been identified.

CHP Lt. Sven Miller said the incident happened about 2:25 p.m. at the Castle Peak off-ramp. Miller said the officer was outside of his vehicle when a Toyota SUV went out of control and struck the officer.

CHP said it does not now know why the vehicle went out of control, but the incident happened in snowy conditions.

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Miller said weather in the area was bad enough to abandon plans to to transport the injured officer by helicopter. Instead, Miller said the injured officer was taken by ambulance to Renown Hospital in Reno. According to the CHP office in Truckee on Saturday night, the officer underwent surgery is in stable condition.

Shortly after the officer was struck, westbound I-80 was closed to all traffic as rescue teams assisted the injured CHP officer and cleared the area. The road reopened about 4 p.m., with chain controls, Caltrans reported. Chain controls also were in effect in the I-80 eastbound lanes, at the Kingvale-Donner Lake interchange.

Winter weather is expected to pound the Sierra Nevada through Sunday, with snow accumulations up to 5 feet in the higher elevations.